long pause?

[bkobrin]

For us beginners, could someone define "long pause". Is it a 3 second pause in between strips? Or perhaps a 10 second pause. Dare I go 30 seconds! I'm sure everyone has their own definition of a long pause, but I would like to get a few opinions. Thanks!

-Ben

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I think the big thing with stripping flies is to vary the length of the strip, the speed, length of pause, etc till we find something that works that day.

In lakes I will use a sinking line and a leech or woolly bugger. The fish seem to sometimes like a very fast, short strip like a machine gun and about 4 inches long with a pause ounce and a while.

Tarpon and King Salmon seem to like a steady, smooth continuous 12 inch strip at times.

Some times you need to vary the stripping so it is not repetitious.

I have learned a lot about this while fishing with others.

I don't think a pause is more than a few seconds long.

[Hairstacker]

Ben, since you’ve asked this question in the warmwater section, I’ll assume you’re talking about fly fishing a topwater popper or deer hair bass bug for largemouth bass and will comment from that perspective.

I think you’ll find many folks have different ideas on just what is a “long pause.” I recall reading one guy saying in a book I read that a long pause is the length of time it takes to smoke an entire cigarette. What is that, 5 – 10 minutes? Some believe the longer you’re able to wait, the better chance you have of enticing a particularly large fish. Conversely others, like Bill, consider it just a few seconds. I think they’re all right because, as Bill noted, I think it’s important to vary the approach on a given day until you find what works. That said, the longer the pauses, the less water you’re going to be able to cover and thus the fewer fish you’re going to be able to present your fly to in the time available, so I do think there is a balance that needs to be struck. The longer pause also gives the fish a very good look at the fly, and I have seen fish on occasion go up to the fly, study it, then slink away without hitting. Just something else to think about.

In my fishing, when I want to employ a long pause approach, what I do is toss the bug out there and almost immediately give it a single “pop” to let the fish know whatever just fell on the water is alive. After that pop, I’ll wait about 20 seconds. If no fish has struck, I will give the bug a quick double-pop and then wait another 20 seconds. If no fish has bit after that, I will pick the bug up and cast to a different spot and repeat. This approach has worked very well at times and it’s not so long that it prevents me from still covering a good deal of water during the outing.

I’m often not so patient, though, and you’re more likely to find me either making constant retrieves, with a short 10 – 15 second pause here and there, depending on the specific spot I’ve cast to, or you’ll find me really ripping the bug along. I will particularly employ the latter, ripping retrieve in the Delta in the fall when the bass, both stripers and largemouths, are keying in on shad and are often very aggressive about chasing the bug down, which can make for some very exciting topwater fishing. I’ve had some bass do some pretty exciting acrobatics to get at a bug ripping past. They seem to know they have to go after it quickly, even though they haven’t got a good look at it, or miss a potential meal. That’s my .02 anyway.

[Hairstacker]

Once again, I seem to have killed the discussion.

[bkobrin]

Perhaps my question wasn't interesting enough to trigger a lengthy discussion! It certainly had nothing to do with your answer.

You were correct in assuming that I was specifically talking about bass fishing on the Delta. I live in Stockton and I'm looking to extend my fishing into the week (instead of just trout fishing on the weekends!) I've gone out a few times now in my kayak with limited success so I thought I'd get a few opinions on the "long pause" theory. I thank you for your input and will report back my future success!

-Ben

[Adam Grace]

Mike you're funny.

I tend to wait for a "long pause" for the first 2-3 strips of my topwater fly, especially if it has rubber leggs to provide subtle movement. It really depends on where I'm fishing. If I am fishing water where the fish are heavily preasured, like a reservoir, I tend to move my fly faster than when I fish a smaller more intimate water, like ponds and small lakes like the one I fish all the time. On large water you generally have to search for the fish, which means a faster retrieve to cover as much water as possible unless you already know exacty where to fish.

IMHO large water bass are not as easily spooked by a fast moving lure/fly as much as a small water bass that is used to a more quite and natural surrounding.

I will tend to wait from 15 seconds until the the rings from splashdown disappear before I strip/move my topwater bass fly. If I make a good cast to a place where I believe a bass to be holding, say close to cover, I will barely move the fly for my first few twitches, especially if the fly has rubber legs. I strip in the line hard enough to cause a slight movement of water causing a medium-sized ring push away from the fly. (The most important part of this is the slight twich that causes the rings to spread out without a medium to large splah or pop that may spook the bass away) Once that first series of rings disappear I will give the fly a little bit harder strip to do the same thing but with a larger/higher series of rings on the water. Both of those twitches of the fly do not move the fly far. I want my fly to stay within the strike zone of any bass holding near that cover.

After the 2-3 small "wiggle" strips I then procede to strip the fly back causing it to move an inch or two with about 5 second pauses. I will only retreive my fly from anywhere from 5feet away from the cover before I re-cast. Some times my strips will speed up and the time of the pauses will decrease.

Recently I have started to use very short burst-strips like the fly is injured and wiggling away. This stripping is tiring on your hands and finger but it elicits a hard grab.

The twiches work well for me on small water, they may also work with large water bass...if you have the time.

[mikenewman]

Ben

Don't get hung up on pauses! If you are only experiencing limited success so far, I suspect you are not getting your bug back far enough back (and indeed, behind) the structure. Find yourself a nice length of levee wall made up of rip rap and clumps of tullies. Fish will certainly be holding station in the corners where tullies and rip rap meet. Fire your bug right into the corner or even onto the rip rap (Weedguard essential) and bloop it back. These are prime spots and if you've got a well defined weed line paralleling the wall as well you've hit paydirt. You'll also make it easier on yourself by avoiding the midday heat until you gain more experience.
You've heard the next bit before, I'm sure but do yourself a favour and book yourself a trip with Capt. Kevin Doran: http://www.deltaadventures.com/
Kevin would get you off to a racing start in this game

Good luck
Mike

[JerryInLodi]

Ben,
One of the places I think a pause is almost essential is at the end of the series of pops. You've cast to the rip-wrap, paused, stripped the fly in all the way to the weed line six or eight feet from the bank. PAUSE at the edge of the weed line. How long? Usually 5 seconds is plenty. Next, if you strip across the top of the weed line, PAUSE again at the outer edge.

[HC]

Ben, Bass can be very fussy about how a floating bug is animated during the retrieve. I like a bug that floats but will dive on the retrieve. There is no simple answer or technique that works every time for every situation, so If one style of retrieve is not working for you on a given day then try another variation of strips and pauses. For example, on calm flat water small motions may be all that are necessary to draw the attention of bass. On rough wavy water a more agressive strip may be required to be noticed. Many decades ago, when I first started chucking conventional floaters to bass I was told by a crusty weather beaten old timer who never failed to get his limit before eleven oclock, as he preferred to at the bar drunk by noon, anyway, he said the initial toss should be allowed to rest until all ripples have subsided. Following this, a small short twitch is given and another pause until things once again settle down. If no fish strikes, then swim the lure back using different speeds and motion. And keep your self moving along to the next spot. Hopefully all of this is interrupted by a strike. That advice had served me well, but it can be enhanced with your own self learned knowlege. Also, Juvenile bass can be very competitive and easy to take while older solitary bass require perfect presentation during favorable conditions, or dumb luck to catch one. This is just a small crumb of info to help you get going and there is much more to the game and hopefully others will chime in with there own thoughts and experiences. Harley

[bkobrin]

Thanks to everyone. You guys have some great ideas which will all be put into play next time I go out. I especially like the idea of waiting for the ripples to subside before moving the bug again. To me that just seems less arbitrary than counting to 3, 5, or 10!

I did get my first LMB last time I went out using an olive wooly bugger (a tip that I picked up from another post!). No more than 8" long, but it did get that first one out of the way